Marketing Strategy for Hospitality Sector: A Case of Leo Event, US
About this Assignment
In this course, you learned how to analyze consumer behavior, use technological tools for marketing, set prices, create advertising campaigns and understand trends in the industry. For this assignment, you will need to analyze a struggling hospitality company and propose and new marketing strategy to their team.
Choose a hospitality company such as a restaurant, hotel, theme park, or entertainment company that is struggling in some way. They could be failing to reach their target market, struggling with sales, had a bad PR experience, etc.
As a consultant for the company, you are charged with identifying how they can improve their current marketing campaign and proposing a new strategy and implementation plan. This proposal should be about 2000 - 3500 words and should address the following:
Part 1: What is the company's current advertising campaign? Identify where their strategy is suffering.
Evaluate their current product offerings and their pricing models.
Are they targeting the wrong audience?
Are they using the right tools and platforms to market their product offerings?
What is their current PR strategy in relation to their brand establishment and what is their focus?
What are their competitors doing that they aren't?
Does their current budget allow for the advertising they need?
Part 2: Propose a new strategy to target the company's current issues.
What research strategies could they use to identify either new consumers or marketplaces to advertise to? Consider new domestic or international channels.
Are there different platforms, systems, or technologies they could use to make their marketing reach more people by increasing efficiency and effectiveness?
How can they improve their current PR strategy and the way they market their brand and product?
How can they use external influences to better affect their marketing strategy? Is there anything they can do internally to affect the way they are positioning themselves to the market? Consider budget, trends, competitors, business organization, etc.
Formatting & Sources
Please write your paper in the APA format. As part of your research, you may refer to the course material for supporting evidence, but you must also use at least three credible, outside sources and cite them using APA format as well. Please include a mix of both primary and secondary sources, with at least one source from a scholarly peer-reviewed journal. If you use any Study.com lessons as sources, please also cite them in APA (including the lesson title and instructor's name).
Primary sources are first-hand accounts such as interviews, advertisements, speeches, company documents, statements, and press releases published by the company in question.
Secondary sources come from peer-reviewed scholarly journals, such as the Journal of Management. You may use like JSTOR, Google Scholar, and Social Science Research Network to find articles from these journals. Secondary sources may also come from reputable websites with .gov, .edu, or .org in the domain. (Wikipedia is not a reputable source, though the sources listed in Wikipedia articles may be acceptable.)
If you're unsure about how to use APA format for your paper and sources, please see the following lessons:
What is APA Format? Definition & Style
How To Format APA Citations
Grading Rubric
Category Unacceptable (0-1) Needs Improvement (2-3) Good (4) Excellent (5) Total Possible Points
Current Product Model (x2) Does not evaluate the current product offering model including pricing, tools, platform and competitor strategy Missing some aspects of the current product offering model including pricing, tools, platform and competitor strategy Evaluates most of the current product offering model including pricing, tools, platform and competitor strategy Fully evaluates current product offering model including pricing, tools, platform and competitor strategy 10
Current PR Strategy (x2) Does not evaluate current PR strategy including audience, brand focus and budget Missing some aspects of the current PR strategy including audience, brand focus and budget Evaluates most of the current PR strategy including audience, brand focus and budget Fully evaluates current PR strategy including audience, brand focus and budget 10
New PR Strategy (x4) Does not identify new strategies for PR, including new internal/external tools, brand and product marketing, and strategies to identify new consumers and marketplaces. Does not address research strategies. Identifies a few new strategies for PR, including new internal/external tools, brand and product marketing, and strategies to identify new consumers and marketplaces. Addresses research, but doesn't connect it to decisions. Identifies many new strategies for PR, including new internal/external tools, brand and product marketing, and strategies to identify new consumers and marketplaces. Supports decisions based on research Thoroughly identifies new strategies for PR, including new internal/external tools, brand and product marketing, and strategies to identify new consumers and marketplaces, Supports and clearly explains decisions based on research 20
Structure and Organization (x1) Disorganized, paper length and content does not meet prompt expectations, and illogical structure hinders understanding Somewhat disorganized, paper length and content does not meet prompt expectations, but structure does not detract from understanding Structure is logical, paper length and content meets prompt expectations, and organized and supports understanding Organization is logical; paper length and content meets prompt expectations, structure enhances clarity and delivery of material 5
Mechanics (x1) Submission has major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax; organization confuses the reader and interferes with the communication of ideas Submission has a number of errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax; organization negatively impacts readability and interferes with the communication of ideas Submission has few or no errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax Submission has no errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax; organization enhances readability and the clear communication of ideas 5
Before You Submit
When you are done writing your proposal, we suggest taking some time to check for any errors or to add some final touches. We also suggest that you use online plagiarism checkers such as PlagScan or DupliChecker to make sure that your proposal is not too similar to any existing materials. Plagiarized submissions will NOT be graded.
How to Submit Your Proposal
When you are ready to submit your written proposals, please fill out this submission form and attach your case studies as Microsoft Word, PDF, or Text documents. After turning in your proposal, you may go ahead and take the proctored final exam. You do not need to wait for your written response to be graded. You should receive your proposal grade within one week.
If you are not satisfied with the score you receive on your papers, you may revise or rewrite your papers and resubmit them for grading using the same submission form above. Keep in mind that the grade you receive on your papers is only a portion of your overall grade for the course, and you are free to retake the proctored final exam as well if you choose. Please see the course syllabus for a more detailed breakdown of the grading policy.
Marketing Strategy for Hospitality Sector: A Case of Leo Event, US
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Marketing Strategy for Hospitality Sector: A Case of Leo Event, US
Introduction
Background
Leo Events is an event management company founded 17 years ago. The organization excels in delivering a fascinating destination event experience to its consumers. Some of the unique selling products of Leo Events include cruise events, destination weddings, and travel services (Leo Event, 2022 a). However, the organization was severely hit during the Global pandemic due to limited tourism. Although it is not new to estimate the brutal impact of the pandemic on the hospitality sector, their struggling period is not over yet. However, the effect is not the same for every player in the hospitality sector. According to Sanabria-Díaz et al. (2021), some hospitality players are still suffering, while others are able to cope with the change in an effective manner. This report, therefore, peeks into the present strategies of Leo Events and outlines the areas that need attention. Besides, the report also proposes a marketing strategy for the targeted organization comprising different affected areas.
Present Struggles
This report gathered information from primary and secondary sources in order to list the existing problems within the targeted hospitality sector. The primary sources include the company's website, testimonies from the owners and customers, reviews, marketing campaigns on social handles, and profit records. On the other hand, the secondary sources comprise scholarly articles discussing the hurdle of the hospitality sector. Additionally, the government and public-associated sites surfed to back the extracted information from the primary sources.
Failing to Reach the Target Market
The primary struggle of Leo Events is to reach its target market at the right time and suitable offer. According to Ludvigsen et al. (2022), a product will lose significance if it fails to serve the user within the required time and urge. The same is observed in the case of Leo Events, as the organization is not able to reach its target market at the right time and with the right offer. It is highlighted by the recent government report stating the drastic decline in outdoor activities and celebrations post-pandemic (JWD News, 2021). According to Coles et al. (2021), the post-pandemic outcomes will be aggressive for various industries, including the hospitality sector. The hardships of Leo Events seem to prove the author's findings.
Struggling with Sales
Another struggle of Leo Events is that it finds it quite hard to sustain profitability throughout the calendar post-pandemic. This is extracted by comparing the profit and loss account from the past 3 years, which stands at 10 million, 8 million, and 14 million for the years 2021, 2020, and 2019 respectively (Leo Event, 2022 b). According to Ludvigsen and Hayton (2022), traveling has declined, and only 36% of the hospitality sector is able to bring back their productivity. This is one fact to justify the hardships of the hospitality sector during and after the pandemic. Sanabria-Díaz et al. (2021) highlight that limited sales are also a product of inadequate marketing tactics, limited working staff, and unpreparedness. Collectively, the organizations like Leo Event are struggling with sales and are in urgent need of provoking strategies.
Bad PR Experience
According to Coles et al. (2021), bad PR can result in disaster in brand images. Various examples indicate bad PR's severe impact on the brand. Leo Events is not yet at this stage, but its PR strategy is outdated. This hospitality company is already struggling with business and profitability, so it is at a high risk of destructive PR disaster with traditional methods. Thus, this part also requires attention.
Part 1
Current Marketing Strategy
Leo's marketing strategy has always revolved around celebrating and illustrating the strategy. The brand used its extravagant brand image as the key marketing strategy. It coincides with business partners to describe its services and make statements accordingly. Leo also uses an effective PR strategy to communicate with its target customers. For instance, recently, the company collaborated with Sherwin-Williams to create a vibrant celebration event on account of the company's anniversary (Leo Event, 2022 c). The brand was aware that Mr. Williams not only had a great story to share but also possessed an extreme fan following. Leo took advantage of both facts and put forward a fantastic celebration experience to all 12000 invitees (Leo Event, 2022 c). This is one example of Leo's effective marketing strategy.
Although this marketing strategy is effective, it has certain flaws causing slow sales for Leo. Firstly, Leo has always associated with other individuals or so-called business partners. This marketing strategy may benefit Leo in the short term, but it will be problematic for a long time. For instance, Leo may use celebrities and famous individuals who inspire others, but it does not match the characteristics of the targeted audience. For example, Mr. Williams is a writer with a fan following of a similar group of people. However, Leo's target market is composed of fun-loving individuals and extroverts. Thus, this creates a conflict of interest among the targeted and marketed audience.
Product and Service Offering
Leo Events offer different products and services to its clients. The products and services are explicitly related to hospitality, tourism, event management, and marketing (Leo Event, 2022 a). A prominent list of products and services of Leo Events includes event management, media relations, branding events, creative concept designing, communication, and destination events. The consequences of the company involve its association with different hotels, restaurants, and travel facilities, whilst the services include the management and arrangement of events. Leo Events has been an active market player in hospitality and event management. Leo's ability to collaborate with devoted and committed brands made it one of a kind. The brand became extravagant with every successful event and hospitality experience it delivered. For instance, Hemline claimed to stand with Leo through different ages (Hemline Official, 2022). Such devoted determination from the business partners ensures the practical preference Leo delivers to them. However, currently, Leo is encountering challenges in sustaining its all-rounding image due to its limited market size.
Pricing Models
Presently Leo uses a value-added pricing model to entertain its target market. According to Coles et al. (2021), the value-added pricing model allows brands to collaborate with their targeted audience and deliver more than just a product or service. Additionally, the brands operating with a value-added pricing model are not bounded by any limitation, and they can provide beyond the required services to sustain their customer base and loyalty. The same is observed in the case of Leo Event. The brand uses value pricing to show intense association with its customers. Although this strategy provides higher customer satisfaction and loyalty, it often troubles the brand in making profits. As the brand focuses too much on delivering value to consumers' i...